Disclaimer: I don't own.

Once Upon a Time at Hogwarts

Back to Reality

Hermione awoke to the unpleasant sensation of something wet and cold under her wrist. She kept her eyes closed in order to prepare herself mentally, unsure what kind of fairy tale they'd be in this time. Then, an obnoxiously loud and familiar snore broke her thoughts.

She sat up and opened her eyes, blinking in the near dark of the hospital wing. Looking down at her bedside, she saw the cause of the noise sprawled half on her bed, half on the chair beneath him, fast asleep. His head rested near her, mouth slack, and a puddle of drool had slowly spread to the part of the sheet her arm had been resting on.

"Urgh," she recoiled in disgust, rubbing her wrist against a dry section of the bedding. She sighed exasperatedly at the red-head snoozing at her side before smiling as she realized that her crazy adventures were over with. Life would be back to normal.

Her smile faded and she looked around to see a man-sized lump in the bed next to her, facing away. No, life wouldn't be back to normal, after all. How could she get her friends to understand that their least-favorite teacher was now Severus to her? And how would the man himself treat her, now that they weren't playing a role in the stories? Real life rarely went the way of a fairy tale.

Her mind too busy for her to relax enough to fall asleep again, Hermione stealthily snuck from her bed and left the hospital wing, ignoring the chill of the castle stones on her bare feet. She stopped at the entrance to the gargoyle blocking the Headmistress' office, wondering now if it were such a good idea to visit so late at night, in her night gown, no less!

She barely had a moment's doubt before the gargoyle animated and sprung to the side, revealing Minerva McGonagall in the doorway. The woman beamed and stepped forward to embrace the astonished young woman.

"I'm so glad to see you well again, Miss Granger, though this is quite unusual timing."

Hermione pulled back from the motherly embrace only to notice that the woman was wearing a tartan robe. She blushed and started apologizing, but the Headmistress shook her head with a smile and ushered her into her office for tea.

"It's been nearly three days since you and Professor Snape were incapacitated. We were seriously considering sending you both to St. Mungo's, but your vitals were sound and we doubted much could be done, either way, so we chose to wait it out a while and see what happened. It's a good thing we did, too. Who knows what effects might have occurred if we had dosed either of you with a potion or used a charm, when we didn't quite know the effects you were going under. If I may ask, do you recall anything?"

This led Hermione to recount their debacle, leading to many chortles from the older woman. She tried her best to downplay the more romantic interactions between her and Severus, but the woman seemed to read through her.

"Severus, is it? Oh, now don't you worry, dear," the woman hurried to say as Hermione paled, "Under the circumstances, you were not at Hogwarts in the role of professor and student while in your mind, so in no way can your conduct be under scrutiny, even if word of it were to get out. I trust the two of you will follow the rules of the school now that your situation has changed, at least for the present time. You only have a month until you graduate. Then you can do as you please."

Hermione flushed at these words, not knowing quite how to respond. The Headmistress tactfully changed the subject.

"I suppose I've kept you here long enough. Mr. Weasley will probably be wondering where you are by now. He and Mr. Potter have been taking turns sneaking down during the night under the invisibility cloak to keep watch at your side."

Hermione smiled when she realized that the Headmistress wouldn't be punishing them for this breach of school rules. She left the woman's office and stepped back into the hospital wing, only to see that Professor Snape's bed was empty, and Ron was still snoring away, the puddle of saliva having doubled.

She sighed, not knowing whether to be disappointed or relieved that he had left. She shook Ron's shoulder vigorously, knowing how deep he tended to sleep after so many years of friendship. He made an odd, wet snorting sound before sitting up, blinking owlishly, his hair almost as messy as Harry's usually was.

"Wassat…" he mumbled, rubbing the drool from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve before looking up at a very amused Hermione. "H'mione! You're alive! I mean, of course you're alive, but you're, well, not sleeping anymore. That's good."

He gave her a dopey smile and her heart warmed.

"C'mon, Ron, let's get back to the common room so you can sleep in your bed. We can talk tomorrow."

He nodded in agreement before standing. He stretched and Hermione winced at the sound of his various joints popping. She turned and led the way to the Gryffindor Common room, Ron's long legs allowing him to easily catch up.

The common room was empty when they arrived, and Hermione was relieved, not wanting to be faced with dozens of questions when she had quite a few floating around in her own head. She briefly hugged Ron before heading up to the girls' dormitory.

All of the girls were asleep, their curtains drawn for privacy's sake, and Hermione went to her bed, happy to see that nothing had been touched or moved in her absence. She lay back on the bed after closing her own curtain, certain that she wouldn't be tired, considering the amount of time she was unconscious, but her eyes grew heavy and soon she was lost to her dreams.

In the morning, Hermione woke to the familiar sound of the other girls getting ready for the school day. She poked her head out of the curtains.

"Oh," Lavender squealed in shock, "Hermione! You're awake? We thought you were still at the Hospital Wing."

Her uneasy demeanor spoke volumes. Hermione smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry, I'm not mad at you about the potions accident."

Lavender laughed, though it sounded strained.

"I'm not worried about you. It's Snape that I'll have to deal with today in Potions, if he's even teaching. I'm afraid I'll be expelled or given detention for life."

"It's Professor Snape, and you can't possibly have detention for life. We graduate in close to a month."

"If anyone were able to extend torture past graduation, it would be him," Lavender said seriously. Hermione smiled and let it pass. Lavender could be less than level-headed at times.

"So," Hermione started hesitantly, "what happened after we all passed out on the Potions classroom floor?"

"Apparently the next class, fourth year Slytherin and Hufflepuffs, opened the door to see us all lying about. Some fainted themselves, thinking we'd all been offed by some deadly potion. Luckily, a couple of them had the bright idea to get another teacher, and all of us were revived by the fresh air and a Rennervate. Besides you and Snape, of course."

"Professor Snape," Hermione once again corrected her, which met with a roll of eyes.

"Sure. Anyways, the Headmistress figured you two were more difficult cases, as you had actual contact with the book."

"But I didn't touch the book! I had just grabbed Professor Snape's arm to keep him steady. He had looked ready to fall at any minute."

Lavender looked at her disbelievingly.

"You really are loony sometimes, Hermione. Anyways, we should leave now so we have time for breakfast. I want to have one last meal before I submit myself to a life of torture."

Hermione trailed after Lavender and Parvati, not bothering to correct her once again. They couldn't understand what she had experienced during the time she had been in her 'coma'. They would never understand that she now considered their tormenter her friend.

Breakfast was normal. It made Hermione tense. Too many things had happened for her to just go back to how she was before the potions incident. She ate little and chatted politely with those around her.

"That's a lovely necklace you have on, Hermione," Parvati said from across the table, "where did you get it from? I don't think I've ever seen you wear it before."

Hermione raised her hand to her neck, not noticing until that moment that she had been wearing a necklace. She usually didn't wear jewelry. She felt the smooth round beads and gasped, transfiguring her napkin into a mirror so she could see for herself the pearl necklace. It was the same one she had taken from the treasure chest during her adventure as Gretel. It was physical evidence that what she had shared with her Professor was not just a dream.

Her eyes darted to the teacher's table and skittered down the line of chairs to where the Potions Professor usually sat. He was there, glaring down at his food while the other teachers mingled around him. Hermione wondered if he still had the emerald that he had taken. She wondered if he thought at all about what happened, or if he even cared. She wondered what he thought of her, if he thought of her at all.

She didn't have long to wonder. They would soon be going to double potions with the Slytherins. It was sure to be momentous.

Hermione plodded along behind Ron and Harry, tuning out their passionate discussion about a Quiddich game that happened a few days ago. She sat in her regular chair, front and center, Neville beside her, nervously puttering around with his potions kit. She winced when he clumsily knocked a vial over, but luckily it didn't break. He picked it up sheepishly, muttering an apology to no one, and placed his trembling hands in his lap.

Hermione was saddened at the fact that, after almost seven years, Neville still cowered in the presence of Professor Snape. If only he knew him as she did… well, maybe not as well as she did. Hermione tried to cool the flush on her face when she thought of the kisses they had shared. No, Neville would faint at that prospect.

Just then, their professor strode into the room, heading for his desk, robes whipping out behind him. He stopped when he reached it and turned to face them, a neutral look on his face.

"I hope that today there will be no more mishaps … Miss Brown, for my patience is wearing thin. We've already wasted enough time as it is, therefore, you will all have double the amount of homework to make up for my absence."

Everyone knew better by now than to groan in protest. If they had, he would probably double the amount again. Hermione felt bad for Lavender being called out like that, but at least he hadn't taken any points from her … yet.

With a wave of his wand, the blackboard filled with the formula for a particularly complicated potion.

"I hope that you have all been studying, for today will be your reckoning. A potion this advanced is likely to be in your N.E.W.T.s practical, so I suggest you not mess up. Begin."

The last word was barked, and everyone scrambled to gather their ingredients and tools. Hermione found the complexity just what she needed to ground herself. When she had something to focus on so much, she could push all her worries away. She soon had her potion boiling in the cauldron, the right color and consistency at the beginning stage.

Once everyone had settled to their work, Professor Snape started making his way through the class, observing and correcting technique.

"Miss Parkinson, fifty points from Slytherin for improper preparation of ingredients. Those leaves need to be shredded, not sliced." He passed by her table, ignoring the fact that she, as well as most of the others, had stopped their work to gape at him.

Hermione kept her head down and her eyes on her potion, but her lips twitched. It was almost like an inside joke, knowing he was punishing Pansy for the Devil's Snare when they had reenacted the story of Rapunzel.

After the amount of points taken away for so minor an error, all of them focused hard on the potion, knowing the professor was in a tetchy mood. All in all, there were no explosions, and even Neville was able to turn in a viable sample that closely resembled the potion they were to make. It would have been a fairly good lesson, if it weren't for the fact that Hermione was keenly aware that he hadn't so much as looked at her.

At the end of the lesson, Hermione took her time cleaning her station and putting her potions kit away, motioning to the boys that she would catch up with them. The Potions Professor was seated at his desk, already grading the samples of the potion turned in. Hermione brought her sample up to his desk, wondering, now that the room was empty, but for the two of them, if he would acknowledge her now.

"Professor," she spoke, trying to get his attention, to at least have him look up at her. He held out his hand for the sample, not looking away from the vial in his other hand. She held back a sigh of disappointment and placed the vial in his hand before turning to get her bag and leave the room, shutting the door quietly behind her.

At dinner that night, Hermione once again looked up at the head table, only to see him looking away from her. So that's how it was. She was sick and tired of the anxiety that had plagued her, wondering what was between them. Making up her mind at that moment, she decided it was time to focus on something more vital and forthcoming than the Potions Master's opinion: her N.E.W.T.'s.

A/N: Don't worry! This isn't the end of the story, and I promise not to leave such a long gap between updates this time! Thank you for your patience. I hope it is worth the wait. Reviews are appreciated. Next up, N.E.W.T.'s, graduation, and a certain professor's prerogative.